Ommegang Abbey Ale

Brewed by Brewery Ommegang (Moortgat)
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Cooperstown, New York USA

Aroma resembles burgandy wine, with dark fruits like raisin and prune. Deep mahogany color with a beige head that flattened quickly. Medium bodied, with near fizzy carbonation (real ale). The flavor is caramel, toffee, raisin, prune, and some chocolate. The mild sweetness dissipates, and the finish is relatively dry. There is arguably some bitter, and likely some anise. Complex ale.

Very dark brown coloring with a hint of red at the edges in my Chimay chalice. The big foamy head is well retained. The aroma is rich and fruity. Notes of grape juice, port and nuts. The taste is very sweet and nutty. It has some brown sugar in the finish. Also has notes of a little bit of espresso and milk. A nice silky smooth mouthfeel tops this all off. A very sold beer. I think my sample would have benefitted from a little more aging. Probably the best all around beer I have had from Ommegang.

Sweet dark fruit in the nose - plums, raisins followed by caramel maltiness and chocolate. A touch of alcohol in there too. Deep, reddish brown colour with dense, pillowy, tan head that does not quit. Coats the sides of the glass. Gorgeous. There’s a definite sweet-sour fruit hit up front followed by huge chocolatiness and a dry spicy finish. A light hit of alcohol in the finish and definite warming sensation. Silky smooth mouthfeel and medium body. Lively bubbles in the mouth. Interesting and enjoyable. Very similar to the commercial description except I expected it to be wine-like whereas this is more like a liqueur. Bottle.

WTF? Yet another brew I have never rated yet have drank more than a few even before Ratebeer was around. Yo to PhillyBeer2112 who is the 2nd person to have rated it way back in August of 2000!

From an two year old + bottle: Pours a deep rich multihued brown and copper with a small fading frothy head but good lace was noted. The aroma has notes licorice, currant, prune, hints of caramel and mocha, earthy yeast esters, and a light oxidition notes that works well. The taste starts quite fruity and scores an undertones of belgian sugar and sweet malts. The big part of the palate however is the strong earthy and woody notes that dominate midesection. It is a characteristics that has not changed since the first time I ever had it. The finish has that licorice twang and a bit of honey too. The feel is sharp and biting with the expected warming of the alcohol, always has tasted stronger than the 8.5% to me. While no longer a classic IMO since other American breweries has since brewed better Belgian Strongs, it is still a must try for all ratebeerians.

Bottle. High creamy and long lasting off-white head. Hazy orange read body. Powerful barley malt aroma with a good deal of alcohol, grassy notes and a faint hint of cocoa. Sweet caramel coffee flavor made less sweet by a good deal of alcohol and a bit of bitterness. Low carbonation. Short aftertaste. Interesting and hard to describe.

750 mL. Poured a cloudy burgandy color with a well-retained 1/4" head. Beer was well-carbonated, and the flavor was composed of dark fruits and Belgian yeast. Some other spices were definitely present, and the mouthfeel was lively.

A great take on the belgian style. On the sweet side with a lot of malt and some yeast. Sugar yes, adding to teh creamy mouthfeel.Apricots? Dates? Delightful accompanyment throughout the meal and after. One of the few beers I MUST have again over many other very good ones. Brown color and beautiful bubbly head

Bottle (750ml) (possibly 5 years old) shared with blankboy and GregClow at Le Select Bistro Poured a fairly dark, murky (almost muddy) peach-ruby with a quick-diminishing off-white head and spare lacing. Quite a few small white floaties in the glass. Aroma was intruguing - strong wine (sour), ferment raisins an other fruits dominated on first sniff, then fairly heavy malts, not much hop, heavy yeast - cheese? - and a tang of lime. Flavour was attention-grabbing - very tart and musty, with strong off-sweet, almost sour malt, some hop and strong yeast bitterness, and evergreen sap in the background. Very complex mouthfeel, hard to describe - slightly lively, oily and alcoholic, but not really. The finish was very much of sour wine, but it worked - definitely a senior citizen, but carried its age well, despite the yeast and dregs. I concur with Greg - I want to try this again with a bottle nearer its prime.